Ice and Dark II
by raining-sin
Summary: Ruri has come back. But there's something between her, Caitlin, and one more girl. She also learned what her wings meant. She's not human, so what is she? And who will die from the Prophecy?
1. Winter Pain pt 1

I'm _soooo_ sorry I haven't updated in such a long time! I've been sick, had tons of homework, and my great aunt is dying. –sob- Please forgive me for taking so long!

Here we go! (Al is 16, Ed and Ruri are 17)

Two years after Ruri left, during the winter…

Ed sat in his room the military had lent him. His head was in his hands, and he could hear the old springs in the bed groan with protest as he shifted. Al sat opposite him, on the second bed. The pale room was cold, as the measly heater sputtered uselessly.

Ruri hadn't come back yet, though she said she would, and the Elrics hadn't found the legendary Philosopher's Stone. Ed had even tried sending himself though the gate again. Ed stood suddenly, grabbing his new red coat from the metal hook drilled into the wall.

"Brother…" Al raised his head to meet the blonde one. The short braid had grown, and much to Ed's liking, so had the body. Even though there was only about a two inch difference, hey, it was still a difference.

But the elder brother was not what someone would call happy. Ever since Ruri had left their lives, Ed had grown very silent. Of course, Al was sad too, but nothing compared to his brother. He didn't even get mad any more at Winry when she called him short. But she didn't do that very often any more.

"I'm going out for a walk, Al. I'll be back soon. Don't go anywhere." Ed opened the wooden door and left Al sighing.

Ed stepped out into the thick snow. His metal leg quickly froze from the lack of heat resistance. The tip of his boot got wetter and wetter, eventually seeping to his toes. Ed sighed and plopped down in the powdery white mess. "Why," he whispered hoarsely, "why is everything going wrong?"

He turned on his side and sank into the cold. "Mom…" He glanced at his leg. "Al…" His arm. "…Ruri." This time the weary teen had nothing to look at. He knew she wasn't human. He knew the things she did didn't follow the rules, the basic laws, of Alchemy. Why was that? When Ruri had asked him that one day on the field… before someone shot her with the arrow… she had asked him how Caitlin was able to "fly" on the slate of rock. Actually, he had no idea and was utterly perplexed. But he had given her a simple answer that probably wasn't right.

And the one day they came out of the locker rooms, pretending to be each other. He had fallen for it, because they looked so alike. And…

"Caitlin!" It hit Edward. They were identical, they did strange things…. The only person that could tell him about Ruri besides Shiro….

The blonde boy flew to his feet and darted inside, yelling for his younger brother.

Inside, Al heard his brother pounding on the door. "Sheesh, it's unlocked, Brother." He stood and walked quickly over to the knob, twisting it to let Ed in. The hyper teenager knocked into a cold suit of armor, which thankfully brought him back to his senses.

"Al!" he panted, "Do… do you have Caitlin's address?"

"Oh, the Caitlin from—"

"Yes! Do you have it?" Ed was shaking Al now.

"Yeah, I think so… let me check…" Al walked slowly over to Ed's suitcase. He stored all his stuff there since he didn't need a bag for himself. "Hmm…" He checked the top pocket… Then the next one… and the next… Then the main flap. "No… Oh! Wait, it might be…" At this he slid his metal pinky finger into the hole in the seam. It split easily, and revealed a white corner of paper. "Yup! Here we go."

Al handed the paper to Ed, who took it and unfolded it quickly. Aloud he read, "386, Agate Edge, Vale. Hmm. She lives in Vale, huh?" Ed looked up at Al and smirked. "Off to Vale we go then!"

Two days later….

_Tch tch tch tch tch!_ Caitlin's head rose to the knocking on the door. _Tch tch tch!_ Upstairs, her sister's voice rang out. "Get the door, Caitlin; I'm not going down there in a towel!" _Tch tch tch tch tch!_

"Mmm…" Ruri's friend rolled her eyes and stood. The blanket keeping her warm dropped to the floor as she walked. The knocking grew more furious. "Shut up…" she murmured. _Tch tch tch!_

"Get the door!" Talia yelled again. _Ugh! Shut up!_ Caitlin thought_. Tch tch tch tch tch tch! _

Caitlin finally reached the large door. Flinging it open, she screamed, "_Shut the hell up!_"

Ed stood there with his fist raised. He stared at her in shock. Caitlin glared back, but her angry expression melted into recognition. "Ed…?" He continued to stare. She cocked her head and asked, "What?"

An hour later….

Ed sat on the soft green couch, a black blanket wrapped loosely around his shoulders. Al sat next to him, with Caitlin across from them both. They had sadly been discussing Ruri for the last hour or so. Caitlin nodded. "Yes, I have been able to do strange things. But I have never had wings before. Though…" She trailed off.

"Though… what?" Al questioned.

"I have had dreams."

"Well, duh, everyone has a dream once in a while," Ed said impatiently.

"But their not normal! They repeat over and over, and I see Ruri in them…. I think it's her, at least… I mean, I see it from a different angel, so I don't know if it's one of those where you see yourself, of where you see someone else."

"Wait…" Ed said softly. "Where are your parents?"

Caitlin looked down quickly. A single tear rolled down her cheek. Al looked at Ed like he had said something rude, but the look on Ed's face was different. He had just made a discovery.

"Ruri didn't have any parents. She did have, however, two sisters." Edward Elric looked over at the hurt girl before him. "Any idea," he said quietly, "Who those two might be?"


	2. Winter Pain pt 2

Okee Dokee, no, don't own him, but love to write about him! A lot of this chappie will be a conversation about the past lives of the three sisters, especially Caitlin. Enjoy!

Here we go again...

Ed and Caitlin walked slightly behind Al, both shivering from the cold on the way to the train. Al, of course, was unaffected. Caitlin had just finished singing for the second time, and left the Elrics amazed once again. "Look!" Al said, pointing ahead. "The station's right there." The three bought tickets, and, jumping on to the thankfully warm train, picked one seat. Al sat next to Ed, Caitlin once again across from them.

Ed leaned against the wall. As he was closing his eyes, Caitlin spoke.

"Umm," she said quietly, "I don't know if this will do any good, but 'Caitlin' isn't my real name."

"Oh yeah?" the older brother asked. He opened one eye to look at her. "Then what is it?"

"Hisui."

_Jade_, he thought. _And Ruri means lapis lazuli. They're both stones. Hmm..._

He closed his eye again, resting them from the harsh, dry winds from outside. Edward though back to the conversation on the way to the station.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

_"Shouldn't we bring your sister?" Ed asked. "Ruri did have two, didn't she?"_

_"No," Caitlin said slowly. "I was adopted. My adoption parents don't like me much, so they won't care if I'm gone. Heh. I knew she looked familiar, and her name was, too, but I had no idea that she was my sister!"_

_"Oh..." Al tried changing the subject. "Do you and Ruri have anything else in common?"_

_"Besides being almost identical," Ed added with a frown, remembering once again the day by the locker rooms._

_"Well," she began. "Before our parents were killed, Ruri, our other sister, and I would almost... well... It's hard to explain, really."_

_"Go on."_

_"We could almost tell if the other was in danger. Sometimes we could tell what number the others were thinking."_

_"I've read about that somewhere," Al said helpfully. "It's common amongst very close siblings."_

_Ed was silent as she continued. "And we each had our talents that we were pretty good at. I remember Ruri's was drawing."_

_"Yeah," Ed said, laughing dryly. "Her artwork's pretty good."_

_Caitlin actually gasped. "She let you see her sketchbook? She wouldn't even let me see it!"_

_ "No, she didn't let me see it," he said. "She threw it at me. It hurt..."_

_She smiled. "Let me guess, you saw her in a towel or something?" He nodded. "Anyway, Hers was drawing. The other sister's was dancing. She was very flexible. I always envied that..."_

_"What's your talent, Caitlin?" Al asked._

_"Mine?" She laughed. "Oh, mine was singing!" She smiled._

_Ed looked over at her. "Was?" _

_Caitlin looked down slowly. "One day at chior," she whipered, "Two girls were mad because I got the lead Soprano part. They thought it would be funny to put me in pain for it." Ed and Al stopped walking and looked at her, surprised. "One got three boys to meet her outside the chior room. When I came out, the boys restrained me while those bitches poured hot oil down my throat."_

_"That's horrible!" Al exclaimed. _

_"Yes, and I couldn't talk for a month. Of course, it couldn't have been to hot, because those disgusting freaks would have been charges for murder or something. I have been taking voice lessons from Talia, my adoption sister, ever since. She's wonderful, the only one who likes me in the family." _

_Ed continued walking. "Can you sing again?"_

_"Yes, but definately not as well."_

_Al skipped ahead to Ed and asked happily, "Will you sing us a song?"_

_"What?" Caitlin looked emarassed. "Well..."_

_"Come on, It couldn't hurt, could it?"_

_"Yeah, come on, Caitlin."_

_"Alright," she said reluctantly. "But you have to swear not to laugh!" After the boys agreed, Caitlin hummed a single note, and began. Her tune was very smooth, a flowing, harmonious sound. Ed and Al had to stop again in amazement to watch her. Caitlin's voice floated up and down through the crisp winter air, weaving a tale of emotions. (A/N: I will put the lyrics at the end of this chapter.) As she softened and ended the wonderful song, she opened her eyes and smiled. Laughing at the boys' expressions, she continued the walk to the station. The boys clapped slowly, smiling widely.  
_

_"That was amazing!" Al told her excitedly._

_"Wow. That was pretty cool," Ed agreed._

_"Thank you!" She did a small bow and stood agian._

_"By the way..." Ed broke the happy mood. _

_"Yes?"_

_"It... it might help if we knew what happened to your parents." Ed almost forced the words out, knowing it might hurt her._

_Caitlin's glowing face paled and hardened like stone. "I was only a little girl when it happened, so I won't know much..."_

_"Please." Ed looked at her, trying to give her some comfort. But she didn't want comfort._

_"My parents were great people," she said quietly. "Father was often gone, away on business. Mother would always play with us. She would tell us to go pick flowers, and then she would make small halos out of them and place them on our heads. She would teach us how to bake cakes, and if we weren't feeling well, we couldn't go to school._

_"Father built a miniature playground for the three of us. Mother would push us on the swings. If it was snowing, she and Father would help us make snowmen." Caitlin smiled sadly. "Once, I actually got lost under the snow. I was there for an hour until they found me. I helped by singing, so they could follow my voice. Hmm..." She closed her eyes, seemingly lost in memories._

_The Elrics were silent for a moment to give her time. "Caitlin?"_

_"Hmm? Oh, yes, the night they... they died... Well, men came into our house. Three of them. Two gaurded the house. The other came in... He was an alchemist. He used the walls and bound my sisters and me to them, one of us on each wall. Then he got my parents to stand by the other one by holding a gun to Ruri's head. Binding them too..." Her voice was choked and tears were welling in unfocused eyes. It took a while for her to continue._

_"He forced us to watch while he tourtured our parents... It was horrible." She quickly wiped her eyes and looked at them._

_"I'm so sorry to hear that," Al whispered, voice full of sympathy._

_"Thank you. After they were killed, the man beat us, then put us in separate bags. All three men took us to different cities, but never let us know where the others were. That's why we didn't come looking for eachother. We would get lost even further."_

_She looked up to the grey sky, a snowflake landing on her nose. Hands in her pockets, she began to sing the same song again. _

_Al walked ahead slightly. After the song ended, Al exclaimed, "Look the station's right there."_

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Ed had fallen asleep on the softly rocking train wall. Caitlin was looking out of the window, watching passing fields of white. Al was reading. As the young girl though back on her chilldhood, one question passed through her mind.

_Who is my other sister?_

_

* * *

_That's it for this chapter. I hope you guys liked it! I'll try updating a lot more often from now on. Thanks so much for all the reviews!

Ruri out!

Oh, wait, here are the lyrics! I made them up to go with the story, I hope you like them!

_Winter pain_

_White little tear drops falling from the sky.  
Memories come back, don't let them die._

_Thorny ends on the roses black,  
Thrust upon their blood attack._

_And when the Sapphire wings descend,  
Sisters' journey comes to end._

_For when the eyes of Jade meet,  
The Onyx halo will tell the feat._

_Don't forget this tale of truth,  
For those at loss within their youth._

_For when these three white tears descend,  
Sisters' journey comes to end. _


	3. back to school

Yay! Thanks again for all the reviews, everyone! Here's chapter three! By the way, I'm going to post the lyrics to the song Caitlin was singing on each chapter from now on, alright? See if you can figure out the riddle, okay? Thank you!

**Attention!** I'm so sorry, on the first part of my Prophecy thing, I put, "_The laws of nature will be broken, and by you alone_." Oopie! Please excuse that. It should be, "_The laws of nature will be broken, but **NOT **by you alone_." GAH! I'm so sorry! -I'm such a failure...-

And last but not least, I have gotten reviews from some readers that explain the setting conflicts to me, mostly "time" ones. I s'pose I forgot to mention that I was trying to modernize this thing a little, to make it different. So there are different room/house styles, different music styles, some clothes may be different, too...

Btw, Final Lullaby, i think your name is awsome! Haha... sorry... But it_ is_ pretty cool...

here's the next chapter!

* * *

The steady rocking of the train lulled Caitlin and Ed through their dreams, until a sharp jerking of the train woke them. It had come to a stop, without pulling into the station. Al turned to Ed to ask why until...

"'Right... Ev'rybody stay still, or I'm gonna 'ave to blow this 'ere boy's brains out of 'is 'ead. 're we clear?" Caitlin opened her eyes to the commanding voice. A strong adult male stood in the center isle, sleek black pistol shoved mercilessly against a young boy's temple. The boy was whimpering, tears spilling down his pale cheeks. He couldn't have been older than seven.

"Let him go!" a woman cried from neaby. "Please! Please... let him go..." Tears were spilling from her eyes, too, as she huddled into the corner, held captive by another man.

And the third and last man walked in, holding a black sack that look strangley like a pillowcase. "In the bag, everyone. Now!"

Caitlin peered over the edge of the window. She could see the ends of the bolts screwed into the train wheels. She thought. This actually might work, if the soil wasn't stone-dry. She glanced at Ed. The triplet could tell he was planning on using alchemy, too. Whispering a short prayer for some possible good luck, she held up two fingers and pressed her fingertips against the worn wall. Instantly, a stream of lime green alchemy creeped up the wall, around the window, down the side of the train and onto the wheels. Maybe this could work. Caitlin focused her mind on the man in the isle, holding the little boy. If she was off, even by a little, she could hurt the sobbing victim.

"Now!" she yelled. The robber only had enough time to look strangely at the girl before a vine shot up from the ground below, breaking the floorboards and wrapping thickly around his neck.

"Augh!.. Ghh.." His fungernails soon were bloody from the vine. The little boy scrabbled to his released mother as the looters clambered off the train. Ruri let the man go, but there was a rash around his neck. He put a hand around his throat and ran off.

"Okay," Caitlin said cooly. "So are we there yet?"

* * *

The next few hours... Ed, Caitlin, and Al stepped off the train, all three smiling nervously at the mother who kept thanking them. (Al wasn't really smiling...) Ed looked up. He didn't really know where they were actually going. Now, he immediately knew. 

Poor old Ed, Al, and Caitlin were back at school.

Walking along the old streets, they saw that the town hadn't changed much. The school they had attended with Ruri had gotten a new paint job. Ed walked up to the front counter first, and was slightly surprised to see...

"Ben!"

The boy that had been Edward's old roomie was sitting behind the counter, chewing on the tip of his pen. "Hmm?" It took a while for him to recognize the teen before him. "Can I help you?" Maybe a little longer. "Look, if you're not here for info, go somewhere else. " Maybe it wouldn't even occur to him at all.

Finally Ed slammed his hand down and said, "Take me to her room!"

"Look, I'm gonna call the cops on you, man."

"I'm with the military!" Ed ripped his silver pocketwatch from his... pocket... and shoved it in Ben's face.

"ED!" Ben sounded delighted.

He led the way to Ruri's old room after some thought and gave them the key. Knocking on the door to room 708, black paint peeling. "Good bye and Good luck, my friend. No spying on the girlies!" Walking quickly down the hall back to the desk, he pecked Caitlin on the cheek, thinking she was Ruri. "Good bye, sweetums," he smirked.

Caitlin blushed and raised her arm...

WHAP

* * *

In room 708... 

Nobody knew what to do with all of Ruri's stuff once she left. So room A was left the way Ruri left it, except for the lack of Courtney's junk. Her suitcase was at the foot of her twin bed, lamplight tilted toward the pillow, book sitting on the quilt, and clothes strewn everywhere. There was quite a bit of dust, but the auto air conditioning had moved the stale air every day.

Al sat outside in the main room, waiting for his brother and Caitlin to finish. Ben, in the lobby, had told them the number of students had decreased by about fifty, because of the press reporting that they had a student who went missing.

Inside Ruri's old room, Ed sighed and began to search.

* * *

-Sobbing uncontrolablly- I'm soooo sorry I haven't updated in such a long time! Agh! I'm ready to just give up on this thing with all my homework. You don't even have to review if you're mad. I won't blame you. -runs away in self-loathing-  



	4. the note

MINI CHAP

Ed came out, a little while longer, eyes distant, unseeing. Al asked him what was wrong. Caitlin came out too, breathing quickly like she had just run a race.

"What's wrong, Brother?" Al asked quietly. His line of sight followed Ed as the blonde haired young adult travled the length of the room and sat against the wall. A small notebook was in his hands, but it fell to the carpeted floor and the cover flipped open. inside was a single passage, not to long. Al walked, squatted, and picked it up curiously. It was dated the day before she "disappereared." Reading inside his head, his sight skipped over the words. It looked like she didn't bother with grammar.

"_hello again, Edward. it's me, Ruri. of course. i mean, who else would it be? i don't know why i'm writing this, seeing as i'm probably not going to give it to you anytime soon. if you are reading this, however, and i have plucked up the courage to give it to you, you must think I'm a loon or something. ha. yeah... So, I can feel my wings trying to come out... bathroom..._"

There was a little gap in the writing, then it continued with a different colored pen.

"_i'm better now. -sigh-... ahh, they're so soft... now my eyes are changing colors too... they were actually brown for a moment, i swear... yeah, you must think i'm a total loon now... i can't wait for the competition! hmm, i wonder who i'm up against. and what's up with your rommate, ben? he's really weird... ha! not like i can be talking..._

_well, the real reason i'm giving this to you (or trying to) is because i'm too shy to tell you in your face. i"_

And it cut off. Al felt a deep sympathy for his older brother. "Brother? Brother, where are you?"

Ed was standing on the small balcony for every dorm, looking into the sky. Its was only later that Al realized that the spot Ed was focusing on was the small patch Ruri disappeared into.


	5. reunion

Reunion

Ed, Al, and Caitlin thanked Ben and stepped out of the academic building. Cold as it was, the sun was out. But grey clouds lingered in the west.

"So now," the eldest Elric brother sighed, "what we have to do is track down the third sister."

Caitlin remained silent. Al cheered up the mood a bit by saying enthusiastically, "Oh! let's go look around!"

Ed's head rose and he said dryly, "Yeah. You can go do that. I just need to think." Caitlin and Al walked off without Ed, seemingly hurt by his tone.

Ed walked slowly off to a nearby diner. "Hmm... the _Fat Pig_. I heard this place was supposed to be pretty good." He stepped in and up to the counter. A very attractive young girl with white-blonde hair was standing there, smiling. Ed didn't spare her a second glance, but instead mumbled audibly, "I'll just have a cup of iced tea, please."

She inclined her head and said, "Alright, just wait there, okay?" She pointed to a seat at the marble counter. Ed sat and played with his automail fingers absently. They made a soft tinking sound on the counter through a small hole in his glove._ Tnk... Tnk..._

About two minutes later, another waitress came out and set the tea in front of him. Ed didn't hear her when she said, "Is that all you would like, sir?"

He was silent, tinking his fingers on the marble. _Tnk... Tnk... Tnk... _He sighed and stopped.

The waitress reached out a hand and tapped the counter in front of him. _Tnk Tnk Tnk... _"Sir?"

"Huh?" The same noise... She must have automail... Ed looked up. And froze.

There was the third sister standing right in front of him... And yet, she was wearing a nametag, like all others.

But, it said...

_Hello! My Name is--  
_

RURI SATO

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thank you! please review. 


	6. Eyes of blood

After Ed had gotten over his shock, he asked stupidly, "Ruri?"

But all that came was, "No, Ed. Open your eyes... It's Caitlin."

Ed's vision was black. He had a headache. Al placed a cool metal hand on his brother's forhead and said, "You kinda... blacked out, Ed. The waitress there said she brought you your drink..."

"You went all white and passed out. Jeez, Ed... For a man of the military, I thought you would have had better taste!" Edward could feel Caitlin shaking with laughter on the bed. With eyes opened a crack, he could see a real picture of the waitress.

He shut his eyes again.

"Caitlin..."

Caitlin's laughter stopped. "What?"

"Ruri had wings..." Ed sat up and watched her.

Caitlin looked at Al. When he confirmed that he knew, too, she said, "Yeah. I know that."

"Can you sing your song again?" Al looked hopeful.

Caitlin sighed and thought the words over in her head. For a while she was quiet, just like the time before the three got on the train.

"Okay," she sighed. "Here we go...

_"White little tear drops falling from the sky.__  
Memories come back, don't let them die._

_Thorny ends on the roses black,  
Thrust upon their blood attack._

_And when the Sapphire wings descend,  
Sisters' journey comes to end._

_For when the eyes of Jade meet,  
The Onyx halo will tell the feat._

_Don't forget this tale of truth,  
For those at loss within their youth._

_For when these three white tears descend,  
Sisters' journey comes to end._

By now, Caitlin had tears welling in her eyes. The rhapsody was smooth and sweet, but also daunting and filled with memories past.

Ed brushed bangs from his forehead and thought absently. Now and then he could be heard muttering short words or phrases... "Sapphire... eyes..."

Caitlin stood slowly and headed toward the small bathroom. Stripping down to her bare skin, she bent close to the mirror. She could see her irises, now blue-grey, with tiny flecks of gold around the pupil. This was her favorite, because to the yougn abandoned girl, her eyes looked like the sea after a storm.

But, she thought, I'm sure they were green this morning... Caitlin- Husui- sighed and stepped into the shower, thinking. In her mind, she ran through the list of colors.

_Gold around the pupil hopeful_

_Blue joyous_

_Green envious_

_Brown calm_

_Grey/silver confused_

_Pure yellow angry _

_There's one more... _

_And black_, she thought. _I've only had that once before... Black means... suicidal..._

And suddenly, Caitlin was reminded of when she was brought to her new home, with her adoption parents and Talia. She had stood on the roof's edge, knees trembling. A pocket mirror that she constantly carried with her told plainly that her eyes were black with the fatigue of living. Caitlin felt worn, like her soul was being pulled and beaten to Earth by her body.

With knees bent and ready, Caitlin was willing to leave the boundries that she had lived with all her life.

But Talia found her.

Talia, the only person besides her family that actually cared. Caitlin saw images of Talia's red eyes, her sobbing plea not to jump. Talia was an alchemist, with a transutation pendant. She had actually transmuted the roof to shackles on Caitlin's feet.

The seventeen-year-old sister looked with bad memories at her left forearm. Scars, thin and painful, had remained there for the past five years. They had healed somewhat, but they were still there. And over her lifespan, Hisui Sato had seven colors racing through her eyes and life. Grey, blue, green, gold, yellow, brown, and black... _Grey, blue, green, gold, yellow, brown, and black..._

The hot water ran down Caitlin's back, soothing aches and pains and tension that had built up over the last few days. Her life, after she had lost so much of her memory, after she had been beated unconsious alongside her family, seemed to have no point.

But with Ed and Al, and the news that her family was somewhere watching over her, Caitlin had one goal.

That goal was to find her sisters. And nothing would get in her way.

With the water off, Caitlin stepped out and wiped the mirror down with a hotel towel. Peering close, she gasped.

Her eyes, wide with shock, were a violent shade of red.

Hope you enjoyed it!

please review!


	7. clover tears

Ruri walked slowly, kicking the small pebble in the grass. Sighing, she plopped down on the hill. It had been such a long time since she had seen Ed. Her hand was rough with all the practice she had been doing. Now that her auto mail arm was replaced with cheap metal, it was easily dented and looked worn and old as a result.

The girl let her head rest on a tuft of soft clover, eyes wide, staring at the heavily clouded sun before her. The sky was gray, the clouds even darker, and the scent of rain was in the air.

Ruri blinked as a small raindrop fell on her temple. Another dropped on the hand in front of her face. She sighed. Life had been a little harder knowing she wasn't human, knowing that things would never be the same.

Knowing that she might never be able to see the one person she needed so much...

Groaning, she sat again, unable to ignore the feeling welling within her. It was almost eight o' clock, and in two hours or so, she would be asleep. Which meant she would have the dream again.

It was the same dream, she remembered, as the one she had at school, sleeping in the same dorm as Courtney, levels above him. The lake, the ice...

And Ed.

Footsteps plodded quietly up the hill behind where Ruri thought almost every night. She started to hum a quiet tune. Shiro, someone whom she could apparently still summon, sat next to her and joined in her soft chorus.

They both knew the song she created almost a week before being taken away. Shiro sang the first verse.

_Falling tears from angels above,_

_Pain runs red in hatred's deep wells,_

_Come save me from this burning hell._

_Please, help me..._

_Raining now, cold sin all over_

_Barren trees in Black October_

_Failing Flame in shadow's cover,_

_Please help me... _(Author's note: this song is fully copyrighted (along with this story) and the Author (me) expects to have it only reused by others with written consent. Thank you!)

Ruri stared strait ahead and held the last, mourning note. Her voice was soft and hoarse, crippled from disuse. Her sister and friend from school, Caitlin, was by far a better singer. But Ruri's hand and eye, well into practice, could still create a masterpiece with charcoal and paper.

Shiro looked at his friend. She was close enough to be a sister, even if he was a little jealous of how big her wings had expanded over time; he had always wanted a pair like that since his wings were but two or three feathers on bony lumps.

He offered his hand to Ruri after standing. The rain fell softly as he took it, but hardly used his arm for getting up. Shiro frowned and asked, "What's wrong? Do you have a fever?" He placed his pale hand on her forehead. It was cold.

Ruri moved her head to the left only a few inches, but he got the subtle movement and removed his hand. She looked up into Shiro's eyes. "Shiro..." The words were hardly audible, but the white-clothed "boy" thought he understood the meaning of her tone, and wrapped his arms around Ruri.

The tears started boiling around her eyes now, reminding him of the last time, so long ago, that he had held his master in his arms while she cried in the rain. But something was different now...

Something cold was surrounding them, keeping Shiro out of Ruri's mind. He tried again and again to read it, but to no avail.

"Please..." he heard her whisper. "No..." What was making her so upset? For the fifth time, he tried to break the barrier protecting her thoughts. The force he got in return was so harsh that his hands were actually moved from her head and he took a sharp breath.

"Stop! I..." Ruri's shoulders shook. Shiro stroked her hair, guilty for trying to break her privacy. "I miss him, Shiro!" she cried.

He was stunned. It had been so long! How could she still miss the little brat?

Ruri slipped out of his arms, running toward the house. His hands were sill suspended in mid air.

And suddenly, one thought crossed his mind:

He would never, for as long as he lived, let the Elric boy touch Ruri again.

* * *

Ruri shut the door to her room quietly. With a bread and cheese in one hand and a small glass of water in another, she sat on the quilt covering her mat. Thinking the last few minutes over again in her head, she slowly chewed her small meal. It was as tasteless as the water in the other hand. Then again, everything had been since that day.

Why had Shiro seemed so mad back on the clover hill? Why had she been so harsh?

Would her plan to go back really work?


	8. Return

Eh, who cares if it's been two years...?

Ruri had done it. There was a seven point array on the floor, all Latin scriptures there, seals completed, and lines unbroken, all on the dusty wood floor. Shiro was standing beside her.

"Alright. You know what to do." Ruri looked up to Shiro to make sure he understood his part. He nodded.

In the demon world, a world beyond the gate, matter was immeasurable. And inch could mean no more or no less than several trillion miles. Shiro's job was to bring Ruri through the darkness and deposit her in the exact location Edward Elric was. Locating him and knowing where that was in an unparalleled world of darkness would be easy. The only hard part would be the actual job of getting her there in the first place.

The demon world had no life-supporting functions. No air. No light. No anything.

Ruri's circle was done. She had the circle she would use in the other world seared into a piece of wood, strapped to her back with lengths of rope. Shiro would help her activate it.

She hoped he would, at least.

Ruri knew her spirit friend didn't approve of Ed because he could take care of her, too. Because Shiro was like a brother, and he wanted to be Ruri's only brother. But from reading her thoughts two years ago on the train, Shiro had found that Ruri found Ed to be a little more than a brother or a friend—feelings that the demon wanted for himself.

But he also knew that Ruri would stop at no length to reach that puny little peanut, and he had to help, otherwise his master, a.k.a. Ruri, would totally shun him.

But the fact that still lingered in the back of their minds was that of the prophecy—the second part had still not been fulfilled, nobody was dead... at least not that they knew of. If Ed was dead when Shiro tried to locate him on the other side, Ruri would have no way to get back. Nobody to bring her back into her world. So she would suffocate in the airless darkness of Shiro's world.

So on the count of ten, Ruri Sato used all of her power to put Shiro back in his territory, keep the gate open, and wait for his hand to beckon her in.

And he was there. She grabbed his fingers and fell through the floor with the transmutation circle. Meeting her was total darkness. She held her breath and pictured Ed as clearly as possible, while Shiro clutched her nose and mouth and tried to keep her warm. No air can mean very cold.

Pictures and little videos raced through her head—the hospital, being in Mustangs office for the first time, train trip to vale, hotel, University for Juvenile Alchemists, his dorm, the lake, the smell of his pillow, the feel of his hair, his eyes when she disappeared into the sky.

And there he was. In the small pinprick of light in her mind, he was there. Shiro tapped her—her transmutation circle board was ready and in front of her. They couldn't speak, because there was no air to transmit sound. But she was running low—with all the strength she had left in her weary body, she placed her hands on the unseen board and focused.

It opened. Ruri let out the last of her air as Shiro pushed her through.


	9. Blue Skye

Ed was walking around the outside of his hotel. Vale hadn't really perked up that much for the last two years. Poor men with missing arms or eyes were on some corners, willing to receive anything, especially money. But all they wanted to money for was to pay the poor girls on the other corners, willing to _give_ anything for money.

Elric sighed and glanced up at the sky. Even though it was a shimmery blue, it looked grey to him. It always had for the past two years. Bright colors meant he was dreaming now. Even the sun looked pale.

But Edward Elric, on this unsuspecting day, was not looking where he was going. And he tripped.

"Augh, watch where you're going..." He sat up and turned around. A girl, about sixteen or seventeen, was lying on her side, turned away from him. She wasn't moving, but he could see a wooden board propped up against her legs. Probably another homeless girl on the streets, he though. Too many of those, these days.

He stood up to leave. But something was wrong. Why would a homeless girl be wearing such a nice dress? Ah well. And Ed started to walk away.

He could hear Caitlin calling him from behind, angry. "Why did you just walk off like that, why didn't you tell us where you were going? Didn't you apologize for, like, walking on that girl? Augh, fine I'll do it for you."

Ed could hear the girl moan behind him. Doesn't matter, Caitlin will do it. Always Caitlin's fault.

He heard his friend bend down and start to speak. "Gomen... do you need help getting up? Sorry, Ed is a jerk... Here...I'll.."

And that's when Ed heard Caitlin scream. Ed whipped around so fast, his braid whipped _him_.

Even from this distance, Ed could see Caitlin's face was white, and her eyes were flashing silver. Not good. She was highly confused. They started to pale to white as Ed rushed to catch her before her head hit the ground. White irises were a sure sign that she was about to pass out.

But Caitlin was so terrified, so shocked that she "whited out" almost immediately. Ed was too far away. But her head was safe, because she turned and slumped against the girl on the street.

Ed raced on, eager to see what would make Caitlin pass out from confusion. And Caitlin was not a small girl. She was tall and heavy, so when she fainted and fell against the light, small girl on her side- the girl on the street- she rolled onto her back.

And Ed saw, with growing disbelief, whom he had nearly walked away from after tripping over. His knees gave way and he hit the cold, hard, cobblestone road and he lay on his back beside her, the edges of his vision growing steadily blacker as blood pounded through his head.

And what he noticed before passing out was, for the first time in two years, the sky above him was a clear, beautiful blue.


End file.
